“Kobe Bryant Became My Dad’s Favorite Player”: Jamal Murray Confessing His Admiration For Black Mamba Resurfaces

Back in 2019, Denver Nuggets superstar Jamal Murray explained how Kobe Bryant became his father Roger Murray’s favorite player. The 2023 champion revealed that while his father initially looked up to the great Michael Jordan, things changed when Kobe rushed onto the scene in 1996. This led to Jamal himself watching Bryant play, eventually developing what can only be explained as a lifelong love for the LA Lakers legend.

According to a recent tweet by NBAinthezone™️, Murray explained that there were a range of Bryant’s characteristics that he quickly started looking up to, including his famous determination to win.

“It’s the mentality. My dad looked up to (Michael Jordan) first. And then Kobe came, then Kobe became my dad’s favorite player, and I started watching him.” he said, before going into detail.

Murray talked about a range of Kobe’s characteristics that he grew to admire. “His mentality. It was his drive to win, it was his never give up on plays, his confidence level in himself and what he could do, his belief in his team, just everything. Everything that goes into a championship type of guy and team, that’s the way he acts,” he revealed.

Of course, Bryant, famous for his ‘Mamba mentality,’ acted as a source of inspiration for a plethora of Murray’s colleagues in the NBA. This was true for the Nuggets’ star as well, who talked about the kind of precious advice that he received, from the late Lakers icon.

Back in 2019, a 21-year-old Murray trained under Kobe at an Invite-Only Basketball camp, according to the Denver Post. He later revealed a range of useful advice that he received from Kobe, especially with respect to his defensive technique. 

Hence, Murray only started watching Kobe Bryant due to his father’s love for the player. Eventually, however, he grew to admire the Lakers legend, so much so that he became one of several modern NBA stars who ended up modeling their game after Kobe.

Jamal Murray believes his game is similar to Kobe Bryant’s

There has been a range of evidence in recent years, of the kind of love Murray has for Kobe Bryant. In May 2023, he was asked about the potential similarities between the two and ended up lapping up the question with enthusiasm. He claimed that apart from similarities in their game, they also shared a similar mindset, according to YardBarker.

Hence, there is little doubt that the 26-year-old has deep respect for the Lakers legend, something which was also apparent in the way he reacted to the news of Bryant’s death. Murray wrote a simple, ‘I miss Kobe’ tweet in response to the news of Kobe’s unfortunate death, and was seen utterly concerned when he first heard the news, from former teammate Wil Barton.

What’s more, apart from being a huge fan, Murray also seems to rate Bryant higher than even LeBron James. Asked about his top players in the NBA on the Daily Loud podcast, Murray showed no hesitation in naming Bryant 2nd on the list, just after Michael Jordan. While Shaquille O’Neal rounded off the top-3, Stephen Curry was a firm 4th. 

Murray, however, hesitated before naming his number 5, initially claiming that it was between LeBron and someone else, before naming James. While a range of fans will disagree, Murray’s love for Bryant still came through.